Page 9 - The Poetic Books - Student Text

Due to this foundation, wisdom literature has a more philosophical flavor. In contrast to the wisdom of
other nations, Israel’s thinking started with reverence for Yahweh. Proverbs announces the principle in
the first verses. “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and
instruction (1:7).” Job devotes chapter 28 to wisdom and summarizes much like Proverbs. “The fear of
the Lord – that is wisdom, and to shun evil is understanding (28:28).” Psalm 111:10 announces, “The fear
of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom.” Ecclesiastes is the record of Solomon’s quest for meaning by
the use of wisdom (1:13), claiming that he “searched to find just the right words” (12:9). The Song of
Songs makes no direct reference to wisdom. The conclusion records advice on male/female relationships
based on an intense experience. “Love is as strong as death… It burns…like the very flame of Yah (8:6).”
Yahweh is the foundation of Biblical wisdom.

The Bible assumes the human ability to reason. (The Hebrew
language uses the word “between” to form the word Nyb – ben -- between
“understanding.”) To discern between two items or two Hnyb – bina -- understanding
thoughts is not the exclusive ability of a believer in Yahweh.
From the beginning of creation humans had an
understanding of the difference between good and evil (Gen. 2:17). They chose to exercise their capacity
from the perspective of evil (3:5-6). The Genesis account of creation is, of course, special revelation.
Some philosophers reject even the concept of good and evil or the ability of humans to discern good and
evil. They suggest that good and evil are constructed by a group of humans and do not describe what is
real. They feel free to rearrange “reality.” A sample of this kind of thinking is powerful. “The Finnish
Green party activist Pentti Linkola argues that human beings are an evolutionary mistake, a cancer of the
earth. Linkola goes so far as to say that he has more sympathy for threatened insect species than for
children dying of hunger in Africa.” “According to Ingrid Newkirk, president of People for the Ethical
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Treatment of Animals, ‘a rat is a dog is a boy.’”

Most people cannot function in their daily lives with such a level of doubt. “When an American meets a
New Guinea tribesman, there are great cultural barriers, but because both are human beings, they also
have a great deal in common. Both are likely to love their families, to know pain and pleasure, to
experience gratitude and a sense of moral obligation. On
the basis of their common humanness, they can become
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friends.” At this basic level, cultures at all times and all
places have assumed the ability to discern between two
items or thoughts and have built systems of wisdom.
While differences between systems exist, they often
have similar advice. An Akkadian sage writing sometime
between 1200 and 1500 B.C., sounds like Proverbs.
Figure 3: Advise of father to son, 2200 B.C.
Do not talk [with a tale] bearer,
Do not consult [with a …]… who is an idler;

9 Gene Edward Veith, Jr., Postmodern Times (Wheaton: Crossway Books, 1994), 74.
10 Ibid., 75.
11 Ibid., 78.
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